Bausch to Pay $300 Million to Resolve Diabetes Drug Lawsuit

Bausch Health has agreed to pay $300 million in cash to settle an antitrust class action on behalf of consumers over the type 2 diabetes drug Glumetza.

The suit is pending in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, where Judge William Alsup must approve the settlement or a trial will go ahead next month.

Depomed, now called Assertio Therapeutics, and Bausch Health subsidiary Santarus originally partnered on marketing the drug. The plaintiffs allege that in exchange for generic manufacturer Lupin Pharmaceuticals agreeing to delay launching generic Glumetza (metformin hydrochloride) until Feb. 1, 2016, Depomed and Bausch paid Lupin $3 million in cash and promised not to launch an authorized generic of the type 2 diabetes treatment until February 2017, 12 months after Lupin’s delayed generic launch.